Terms of Use

Accepting These Terms

By using Zinstrel you agree to these terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the site.

Your Account

You must be at least 13 years old (16 in the European Economic Area) to create an account. Keep your login details private, give us accurate information, and let us know if you think someone else has access. You may close your account at any time, and we may suspend or remove an account that breaks these terms, spams other members, or is used unlawfully.

Submitting Music and Other Content

When you submit a release, artwork, bio or other material, you confirm you own it or have permission to share it, and you give Zinstrel a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to display, excerpt and promote it on the site, in the newsletter, on radio and on social channels. You keep ownership of your work. We may decline, edit or remove any submission, and we cannot promise coverage or airplay.

Artist Profiles and Claims

Zinstrel lists artists from our own archive as well as ones members add, so a listing may exist before anyone owns it. If an artist is yours, use the claim link and we will review the request; we may ask for proof and we decide claims at our discretion. Making a profile public is your choice, and you can hide it again at any time. We may edit, merge, rename or remove artist listings to keep the directory accurate, and we may remove a profile that impersonates someone else.

Reviews, Chat and Community Areas

Reviews, chat messages and other member posts are yours, and you give us permission to display them on Zinstrel. Keep them honest and civil: no abuse, harassment, spam, paid or fake reviews, or reviewing your own release to inflate it. Chat is public and lightly moderated, and we may remove posts or restrict accounts that break these rules. Opinions in member reviews are the writer's, not Zinstrel's.

Acceptable Use

• No unlawful, hateful, harassing, deceptive or infringing content.
• No scraping, automated bulk access, or attempts to break site security.
• No impersonating other artists, labels or Zinstrel staff.
• No uploading malware or interfering with other people's use of the site.
• Keep uploads within the posted size limits and upload only images you have the right to use.

Our Content

Articles, images, branding and the design of Zinstrel belong to us or our licensors. You may quote short excerpts with credit and a link, but please do not republish whole pieces without permission.

Copyright Complaints

If you believe something on Zinstrel infringes your copyright, contact us with a description of the work, the link to the material, your contact details, and a statement that you hold the rights and are acting in good faith. We remove infringing material promptly and will pass on counter-notices where appropriate.

Advertising and Affiliate Disclosure

Zinstrel carries advertising, sponsored placements and shop links, and may earn a commission from some of them. Sponsored content is labelled, and paying for an ad never buys editorial coverage or a favourable review.

Third-Party Links and Embeds

The site links to and embeds material from other services, including Substack, YouTube, Spotify, SoundCloud, Twitch, our radio partner and our merchandise store. We do not control those services and are not responsible for their content, their availability or their terms.

Disclaimers and Liability

Zinstrel is provided “as is”. We work hard on accuracy but do not guarantee the site is error-free or always available, and nothing here is legal, financial or professional advice. To the extent the law allows, we are not liable for indirect or consequential losses arising from your use of the site.

Changes and Governing Law

We may update these terms; the date above shows the latest version, and continuing to use the site means you accept the changes. These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Idaho, USA, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules.